Holt Meado The future l bright By David Gargaro
Holt Meadow Group is a relatively new property management firm, but they’re backed by decades of real estate experience. Although they started as a subsidiary of multi-family developer Pinemount Developments Ltd., the privately owned and operated property manager plans to forge their own path in the GTA’s rental housing market. They believe their innovative approach to traditional property management will elevate the resident experience and create more value for the owners of these properties. “Our hope is to establish ourselves as the premier, new third party management service, and continue to build our presence in a tight Canadian rental market,” said Oren Turkienicz, CEO, Holt Meadow Group. “As long as we continue to push the vision of high-quality management, and introduce innovative practice that assists in expanding our clients’ ROI, we think we will see a lot of success as the market continues to grow.” 14 | December/January 2024
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About Oren Turkienicz
About Pinemount Developments
Real estate has always been a family affair in Oren’s household, as his family has a long history in real estate development and commercial property management. He learned a lot about what happens behind the scenes, Oren Turkienicz the development of processes, and how his parents came up with strategies to solve problems.
Eli is founder and president of Pinemount Developments. He has been a real estate developer and investor for more than 30 years, and has launched and completed numerous multi-million-dollar projects. He spent those decades growing his family development firm’s portfolio through the acquisition and construction of commercial and industrial buildings and condominiums, multi-storey office buildings, and detached and semi-detached residential homes.
“Real estate is a game of strategizing, and it helps if you are exposed to it at a young age,” said Oren. Oren formalized his education in real estate at the University of Guelph, enrolling in the BComm Program with a specialization in Real Estate and Housing. He took part in the university’s co-op program, working in various roles in different organizations, including a large multinational REIT, a public utility company, and a startup industrial REIT. After graduating in 2015, Oren went into the construction finance business, learning more about the real estate industry from the lender’s perspective. Oren’s father, Eli, later asked him to join his firm, Pinemount Developments, after starting construction on two new projects. Oren eventually became Vice President of Acquisitions, where he is responsible for acquisitions and development of new opportunities, interacting with lenders, project management, and servicing investors and lenders. “At first, the concept of joining the business was a bit nerve-racking,” said Oren. “You never know how your personalities are going to align with, not just your family, but with your father. Luckily, I think the both of us complement each others’ skills well. Eli has a very calm, patient approach to business and it is a great feeling to be able to watch him operate and apply those characteristics into my approach as well." Oren is a member of the Urban Land Institute, the world’s oldest and largest network of crossdisciplinary real estate and land use experts; the Kehilla Residential Programme, which identifies and champions affordable housing initiatives that meet the needs of the Jewish community; and the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto. He also enjoys playing softball and basketball, and spending time with friends and family. “I make sure to spend as much time as I can with my family and friends in my off-time,” said Oren. “The days are busy and can be stressful, so it is important to prioritize. I’m always in work mode, so when I can travel, I like to take advantage of it.”
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In 2010, Eli founded Pinemount Developments, which focuses on building multi-family real estate developments across the Greater Toronto Area and southern Ontario. To date, they have built (or planned to build) hundreds of units and more than one million square feet of real estate. "In real estate, they say location is everything, but it’s really all about the vision of what you can do with that location,” said Eli. “Pinemount prides itself on its ability to source strategic lands in fundamentally strong real estate markets, execute on entitlement, and push through construction in an efficient manner.” Pinemount Developments provides various services to the rental housing market. They include finding land opportunities to develop mid- to high-rise purpose-built apartments, site sourcing, land use planning, and on-site preparation, construction, and maintenance. They have developed a variety of multi-family residential communities, including purpose-built rentals, condominiums, and student rentals. Some of Pinemount Developments’ projects include: • Ferndale Gardens, a 64-unit apartment building in the Ardagh Bluffs neighbourhood of Guelph • Gorman Park, a 170-unit purpose-built rental in Bathurst Manor neighbourhood of North York (to be completed in 2025) • 166 College Avenue West, a 110-unit building in the Old University neighbourhood of Guelph • 600 James Street North, a 72-unit apartment development in the West Harbour neighbourhood of Hamilton (to be completed in 2025) “Ferndale was a very nice four- to five-storey storey walk-up in Barrie, newly built with nice amenities,” said Oren. “The building was completed in September 2020, directly in the middle of the initial COVID-19 outbreak. As you can imagine, there were some complications and difficulties finalizing and completing a building when we didn’t know the outcome or what might happen the next day. Our patient approach to leasing, managing key stakeholders, continued on page 20
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and managing an unknown and unprecedented business and construction environment led us to lease the building at market highs, and sell the building at a market average per door that was the highest in Barrie ever. A lot of perseverance, patience, and calm was needed to ensure a smooth delivery of the building for both sale and leasing.”
new innovative asset implementations to further increase the return on investment for their assets.
Launching Holt Meadow Group
When Holt Meadow Group first entered the market, Oren wanted to see how the purpose-built rental market would evolve and where the market was heading. As interest rates started to increase, and a notable softening ensued Daniela Douglas in the condo market, he felt it was the right time to start building the team. This led to a dilemma commonly found in the management industry: do you build the back office first or find clients first? Oren felt that the success of the business would be built on the team they employed.
When Oren came on board with Pinemount Developments, they decided to focus their development company on purpose-built rentals in the secondary market. After they completed their first two projects, they interviewed and implemented several different management companies. They noticed a similar theme and approach in how the firms operated. Since Pinemount Developments was quite hands on in their business, and given their role as development managers, they decided to create Holt Meadow Group to provide the same services to their clients. "When Pinemount originated, we both felt conviction in the rental market, knowing it was a niche part of the development market at that time," said Oren. "We look back on the buildings that we built and sold and think, ‘Gee, it would have been nicer to hang onto these high-quality assets’. We felt that if were building these high-quality assets, we should be the ones to manage them to the same level.” Holt Meadow Group is a full-service property management company. They oversee a wide range of areas for clients, including property management, asset management, leasing, sale, and re-financing. They believe in positioning the company as a partner to the asset owner. Holt Meadow Group takes a forward-thinking approach to meeting the needs of tenants and creating value for asset owners. This includes providing concierge services to identify personalized solutions to address individual tenant requirements, conducting regular property inspections, and making continuous enhancements to their properties. “Holt Meadow Group looks forward to our greatest accomplishment,” said Oren. “Every major step in our development of this company will be the greatest, until the next milestone is hit.” Holt Meadow Group has a foundation in property development. Combined with their experience in property management, they believe they have a different perspective on buildings than other companies. Because they’ve built the assets they manage, they have a solid understanding of how they work. They also want to introduce
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“On top of everything else, we feel we are bringing a precision, expertise, and overall assertiveness that will put us over the top in the industry,” said Oren.
Growing the business
“Your employees are the backbone of the company,” said Oren. “No matter how many clients you get, if your team isn’t strong enough, there won’t be success.” The company’s initial hire was Daniela Douglas, who is highly regarded by her peers. She is a certified property manager, accredited member of the Institute of Housing Management, and has completed the Leadership Program, mentoring a number of property managers. She has managed billions of dollars’ worth of real estate for two of Canada’s largest landlords, and has accumulated more than 20 years of experience in the property management field. She has learned how private investors, institutional investors, and publicly traded organizations set their financial goals. She has also developed a strong financial acumen with a keen eye on expense savings and creating additional revenue streams. “Throughout her career, Daniela has built highly engaged and motivated teams that deliver exceptional results, handled multiple crisis and media situations, outsourced ancillary revenue contracts with a projected revenue range from $200,000 to $500,000 per contract term,” said Oren. “She has participated in creating training manuals that were used to develop national training programs while also becoming a member of newly formed committees to amend the existing legislation pertaining to electrical maintenance in the residential sector. It is likely that when you speak to a property manager on a high-quality building in Toronto, they were mentored by Daniela Douglas.”
Holt Meadow Group has made the decision to focus on property management within the realm of real estate investment. The company has been able to demonstrate their value by providing exceptional property management services. Their services include comprehensive property assessments, tenant relationship management, financial acumen, proactive maintenance, and the incorporation of technology. "We not only enhanced property values but also improved tenant satisfaction, reduced operational costs, optimized property operations, and mitigated risks for property owners," said Oren.
efficiency and a modern corporate approach, as well as all the employees that help us meet these goals, that motivate me to push this forward.” Over the short term, Holt Meadow Group markets heavily to developers, existing landowners, and current building owners. Development is a longterm play, and they feel they can help position other developers with their needs at an early stage. They aim to offer an innovative approach to management, allowing the value created to speak for itself. “In terms of long-term goals, our hope is that the name Holt Meadow Group becomes synonymous with high quality real estate management and consultation,” said Oren. “We want to be the first company people think about when they are considering to own or operate their rental portfolio. We want our name to be linked with trust, honesty, integrity, precision, and hard work.”
Business philosophy Holt Meadow Group also provides real estate consulting services. They connect with asset owners during the early stages of development, at the onset of an acquisition or when the client needs help determining where the pain points are in their current assets. As more developers look at purpose-built rentals as an option for their pipelines, and more property owners seek creative approaches to managing their assets, Holt Meadow Group believes they can provide a fresh perspective to creating value in this space. “Having a property manager with a clear and effective understanding of new buildings, from a leasing, operations, and building systems point of view, is essential in ensuring the project is well programmed to meet the needs of new renters,” said Oren. “The need for overly amenitized communities, as well as creating a sense of belonging amongst the residents, is essential from the start. Holt Meadow brings that value from an early stage.” In terms of existing product, Holt Meadow Group takes a similar approach on the new construction side. The company looks at things with an eye for innovation and employment of new proptech. They have been able to see significant reductions in costs on an annual basis from realizing these measures. Holt Meadow Group has also been able to rely on their experience of reducing operational costs on the new build side. “As the rental market changes, we feel there is a new watermark set for customer service from the asset owners all the way to the tenants,” said Oren. “Building a new business that follows the main tenets of community, customer service,
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Holt Meadow Group’s company slogan is “Where tradition meets innovation.” Their leadership recognizes the value of tradition, as their foundation is based on decades of experience in the rental housing industry. At the same time, the company embraces a cutting-edge approach and forward-thinking ideas in how they do business. “We constantly look for ways to implement technologies that can improve our operations and provide a better living experience for tenants,” said Oren. “We focus on placing the individual experience at the forefront of our strategies, which is how it has always been.” One of the company’s goals involves applying as many property-related technology methods as possible. For example, they use smart lock and other smart property devices to perform inspections, which includes the common areas and in-suite. They also automate and digitize all of their forms. Examples include heat monitoring, geothermal integration, smart locks, smart parcel lockers, and virtual concierge. Another focus is the connectivity of tenants to management. Incorporating QR code technology to create a seamless and automated communication line assists in ensuring all property-related requests are heard quickly and acted on even quicker. Holt Meadow Group plans to stay and remain ahead of the curve on property technology incorporation. “Residential real estate in the U.S. and Europe is miles ahead of Canada on this front because renting is such a norm, so there is an expectation among their tenants and customers,” said Oren. “Canada, and specifically Ontario in this case, is heading in that direction, and we feel now is the time to commit firmly to that early integration.”